The Indiana University Art Museum traces its establishment to 1941 with the hire of IU Fine Arts Professor Henry Radford Hope, although a small art teaching collection already existed prior to that date. That same year, the Board of Trustees approved the construction of a "fireproof gallery and storage room for the showing and storage of valuable art and exhibits" in Mitchell Hall. In 1948, Hope established the Hope Fund with the help of a few major donors to create a collection of prints, photographs, drawings and watercolors for the university which would lay the foundation for the permanent collection of the IU Art Museum. The collection flourished and grew, and in 1982 it moved into its current building designed by I.M. Pei. To date, the museum has amassed over 45,000 pieces spanning ancient artifacts to modern pieces to create what has become one of the foremost teaching collections in the country.